I am still processing how I feel about this novel.

What I know for sure is that it is (in typical Hogan fashion) so beautifully written that I can't help but love it. What I struggled with was such persistent commitment to the abstract. While I love how deep Hogan takes readers into an imagined sense of identity - I think what is lost is a lot of the actual story. This novel takes dedication to read - and if you make it to the end you will be rewarded with a plethora of introspective thoughts, a great longing to connect with culture and a whole lot of wondering exactly how you've been called to action.

Would absolutely recommend to my friends who appreciate more literary reads - would caution the rest to stay away and accept the things you cannot change ;) ( )

Not the book I was expecting from Hogan, but like some of her other writing, the overall theme was not romanticized. Strong contrast between the Ruth's close awareness of the rhythms of the sea, of life and the men's disconnect, power-grabbing or drowning in alcohol. At least for Thomas we are given his story to help us understand, somewhat, his loss of spirit, his wish to hide from the world.
The narrator of the audiobook read in a rhythm strongly suggestive of waves washing in and subsiding. Each sentence. This was somewhat distracting, but I see other reviews mentioning that the writing itself was wave-like.
My review would have been more extensive & cohesive if I had written this sooner after reading. ( )

I liked this book, and true to Linda Hogan's other books, the imagery is amazing. The story started off really strong and I loved the fantastical embedded in Native American folklore. However, it soon jumped to Vietnam and back with a good storyline, but not as strong as where we'd started. I still wanted to learn more about Ruth being born with gills and what happened to Thomas, if even in the "other world". Most of the pieces wrapped up in the end, but with less energy and vividness than I'd hoped. I think this was a very personal story to the author but maybe the whales and the war were two different stories. This certainly won't stop me from reading all of her other books though... ( )

As a group we loved the fluidity of the writing and language, the lullaby sense of ebb and flow. Hogan examines the themes of heroism, community and spirituality through the eyes of gender. The male meaning and seeking of and the female reality. The character of Thomas is open to the reader's own interpretations, but Ruth and the women are well drawn and defined. The bridges and disconnects between Native Americans and being Americans; cultural divides while honoring the past and living in the present. ( )

This is one of those books I'm going to re-read. It's just so RICH. The writing is astounding, and the story is compelling. Such wisdom and healing - wide and deep as the sea, and the whales and the people who live in profound harmony with their environment.

A couple of quotes: "

“He wakes up and he is not a halfhearted man and he can’t remember why he wakes this way, except that he hears the sound of birds and it is as if behind the human world something else is taking place. "

and:

“Like the water, the earth, the universe, a story is forever unfolding. It floods and erupts. It births new worlds. It is circular as our planet and fluid as the words of the first people who came out from the ocean or out of the cave or down from the sky. Or those who came from a garden where rivers meet and whose god was a tempter to their fall, planning it into their creation along with all the rest.”

Marvelous. Hogan is a literary priestess. ( )